10 Things You Need To Know This Morning

REUTERS/Mohammed SalemYoung Palestinian groom Ahmed Soboh, 15 and his bride Tala, 14, stand inside Tala's house which was damaged during an Israeli strike in 2009, during their wedding party in the town of Beit Lahiya, near the border between Israeli and northern Gaza Strip September 24, 2013.

Good morning. Here's what you need to know.

Markets in Asia were mixed in overnight trading. The Japanese Nikkei 225 fell 0.8%, the Hong Kong Hang Seng rose 0.1%, and the Shanghai Composite fell 0.4%. European markets are in the red with the exception of Italy, currently up 0.3%. In the United States, futures point to a negative open.

GfK's September Consumer Climate study suggests that German consumer confidence will rise to a better-than-expected 7.1 reading in October from 7.0 in September. "German consumers are expecting the economy to gain momentum again in the coming months. This is reflected in the increase in economic expectations, which are on a clear upward trend. Germans' desire to shop also appears to be unbroken. In fact, willingness to buy once again improved on the record value of the previous month. However, income expectations declined for the second consecutive time, but continue to be at an extremely high level," said GfK in a release.

Mortgage applications rose 5.5% in the week ended September 20, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The week before, mortgage apps were up 11.2%. Before that, applications plummeted to five-year lows in 2013 as a sell-off in the Treasury market has sent mortgage rates soaring.

August durable goods orders data are released at 8:30 AM. Economists predict total orders fell 0.2% last month after dropping 7.4% in July. Durable goods orders excluding transportation are expected to have risen 1.0% after falling 0.8% the month before. Nondefense capital goods orders excluding aircraft (a.k.a. "core capex") are expected to have risen 2.0% in August after falling 4.0% in July. Follow the release LIVE »

August new home sales data are due out at 10 AM. After a 13.4% plunge in July to 394,000 units at an annualized pace, economists predict sales rebounded 6.6% in August to 420,000 units annualized. Fed watchers will be following these data closely, as the drop in sales may have factored into the central bank's shock decision last week to refrain from tapering back quantitative easing.

Americans are losing faith in the nation's economic recovery, according to a poll conducted by Bloomberg. The results show that only 27% of respondents expect improvement in the strength of the economy, down from 39% three months ago.

Sweden sold its remaining 7% stake in Nordea for $3.4 billion. “The government’s role is to regulate the banks, not to own them,” said Financial Markets Minister Peter Norman in a statement. “Bank shares are risky assets and banks require strict regulation and extensive supervision. The aim of the government is therefore to sell the state’s remaining stake.” Nordea shares are up 28% this year.

Alibaba, China's biggest e-commerce company, abandoned plans for a $60 billion listing in Hong Kong, and instead will move forward with plans to IPO in the United States instead. Alibaba executives want the power to nominate a majority of board directors when the company goes public, something the Hong Kong exchange would not let them do. The FT calls the Alibaba listing the most anticipated IPO since Facebook.